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The information on this website is designed to offer self-care tips and recommendations based on evidence-based research and literature from professionals in each field. It is not intended to diagnose or treat any specific medical condition. Please consult with your healthcare provider before making any health-related decisions.
Changing your unhelpful thoughts can reduce negative emotions and increase overall happiness. The Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus once said, “We are disturbed not by events but by the views we take of them.” This suggests that happiness is a choice; it’s not external events but our attitudes and perceptions of those events that affect our happiness.
In this self-care article, you will learn about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and how to use it daily to increase your happiness by addressing unhelpful thoughts. As a licensed clinical mental health counselor, I have witnessed its effectiveness in helping many clients with severe mental illnesses. However, I have also seen it significantly boost happiness when applied to the everyday distressing thoughts we all encounter.
Model of Emotions
Before I explain CBT and how you can apply it, I think it’s important first to explain the model of emotions so you can understand how CBT improves your happiness. For many people, emotions arise spontaneously, often leading to ineffective and reactive behaviors. Fortunately, by understanding how emotions are formed, you can learn to influence and even change these emotions and the actions that result from them. The model of emotions illustrated below can help apply Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The cognitive component of CBT focuses on modifying the “interpretation” of events, thereby transforming behaviors into more helpful ones.
Explaining Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a widely used and effective form of psychotherapy that focuses on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviors. Many studies in the area of mental health have shown that CBT is effective in treating depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, eating disorders, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance use, personality disorders, sleep disorders, chronic pain, and ADHD. It can significantly improve happiness in life through several mechanisms:
- Identifying Negative Thoughts: CBT helps individuals become aware of their negative and often irrational thoughts contributing to unhappiness. By recognizing these thoughts, people can start to challenge and change them.
- Cognitive Restructuring: This technique involves questioning and modifying negative thoughts and beliefs. By replacing them with more realistic and positive ones, individuals can improve their outlook on life.
- Behavioral Activation: CBT encourages engaging in enjoyable and meaningful activities. This helps break the cycle of depression and inactivity, leading to increased feelings of happiness and accomplishment.
- Problem-Solving Skills: CBT teaches practical skills for addressing and managing life’s challenges. Improved problem-solving abilities can reduce stress and anxiety, making a happier life.
- Stress Management Techniques: CBT often incorporates techniques such as mindfulness and relaxation exercises, which can help reduce stress and promote well-being.
- Improving Self-Esteem: CBT can enhance self-esteem and self-worth by addressing negative self-beliefs and building a more positive self-image, leading to greater happiness.
- Enhancing Resilience: CBT fosters resilience by teaching coping strategies and ways to manage setbacks. This resilience can help individuals maintain happiness even during difficult times.
- Building Better Relationships: CBT can improve communication and interpersonal skills, leading to healthier and more fulfilling relationships, which are crucial for happiness.
CBT addresses mental health’s cognitive and behavioral aspects and provides a comprehensive approach to improving happiness and overall quality of life.
Example of Applying CBT
Let’s say you receive criticism at work about a project you completed. Here’s how the CBT process can be applied to this situation:
- Situation: You receive an email from your boss criticizing your recent project.
- Automatic Thought: Your initial thought might be, “I’m terrible at my job. I can’t do anything right.”
- Emotional Response: This thought leads to feelings of sadness, anxiety, and frustration.
- Behavioral Response: As a result, you might avoid starting new projects, withdraw from colleagues, or even consider quitting your job.
- Identifying Cognitive Distortions: Using CBT, you identify that your automatic thought involves cognitive distortions such as overgeneralization (“I can’t do anything right”) and catastrophizing (“I’m terrible at my job”).
- Challenging the Thought: Next, you challenge this thought by asking yourself questions like:
- Is there evidence that contradicts this thought?
- Have I received positive feedback in the past?
- Is this criticism about one specific project, or does it reflect my overall performance?
- Alternative Thought: You develop a more balanced thought, such as, “This project didn’t meet expectations, but it doesn’t mean I’m bad at my job. I can learn from this and improve.”
- Emotional Response to New Thought: This new thought might make you more determined and less anxious.
- Behavioral Response: Instead of avoiding work, you might seek feedback, ask for clarification on the points of criticism, and use this information to improve your future work.
- Outcome: By applying CBT, you’ve shifted from a negative, unhelpful thought pattern to a more constructive one, leading to more positive emotions and productive behaviors.
Over the years, various thought records have been developed to guide individuals through changing distressing thoughts, a process known as cognitive restructuring. I have created a thought record that helps you identify unhelpful thought patterns and work through them to develop more constructive thoughts. Click on the image below to download this thought record for free.
